PAstudent

It seems like she's already scheduled for surgery, but if it's any consolation, she'll have a much safer and easier time with the surgery! Younger people tend to recover faster and lose more weight faster than someone older might.

Hi, Ance. I'm not here to make any judgments about your parenting or about your daughter. I'm just here to share with you that I was 20 years old when I got the sleeve and I think it's the best possible thing I could've done for myself. My highest weight was 256 (I'm 5'4 maybe 5'5) and people would look at me when I told them and say "Oh, you don't need that" or "Aren't you a little young/small/etc for that?". They're still surprised when they learn that I've had the surgery. We do live in a society where over half of the people we see on a daily basis are either overweight or obese. It severely skews our perception of "healthy". Ultimately, is it really healthier to hate yourself every single day and kill yourself trying to lose weight the "natural" way, or is it healthier to undergo a procedure with a very small complication rate and lose weight under the supervision of highly trained professionals? These questions helped me decide if surgery was right for me: Am I able to do all the things a 20 year old should be able to do? (No. I didn't have the confidence, stamina, or energy. I was also healing slower than average from injuries.) Am I happy with my weight? (No) How many years have I tried to lose weight? (I started dieting when I was 10 years old) How many diets have I tried? (Too many to remember) Have I seen professionals? (Yes, many) Have they helped my binging or relationship with food? (No) Have I stuck to a diet and exercise plan for at least a couple months? (Yes) Was it sustainable and could I see myself living the rest of my life like that? (No) Am I at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome? (Yes) Do I want to wait until I get one of these conditions to use one of the most effective and long term tools for weight loss? (No) Despite my dieting, was my overall trend in weight continuing to rise? (YES) Did I want to do something drastic that would help me live a healthier life? (Yes) Did I want it to be permanent? (Yes) Was I ready to stop thinking about food 24/7? (Yes) Did I want to be part of the statistic that this generation may be the first to not outlive its parents? (No.) Surgery shouldn't be anyone's first option. It's a serious life commitment. But, for some people, it is the right choice. Now, I'm only one month out (and 26 pounds down), but my relationship with food now after surgery is 10 times better than it was prior to surgery. I eat for sustenance and to meet protein/calorie goals, not to feel good. This isn't something that 2 nutritionists, a dietician, and 3 therapists were able to do. I highly recommend therapy, but losing weight on your own is incredibly difficult, nearly impossible, when all you do is obsess over food. I think the best thing about this surgery for me is that there's a light at the end of the tunnel and I can totally see myself keeping up with my new lifestyle.

Are you having broths and soups? Bone broth is an especially easy way to get protein in Plus, they add some nice savoriness to an otherwise sweet collection of foods.

Happy Birthday! If you're not picking at it and your glue/incisions aren't being rubbed off by clothing, you should be fine. I only had the glue, but it just slowly fell off over the first 2 weeks. Everyone's body is different, your recovery will be different than the next person's. If you're concerned, general signs of infection are: redness, swelling, pain, and fever

At 2 weeks out you'll be fine I had 2 flights 2 days out of surgery. I was extremely nauseated and a little bit out of it due to pain meds so my boyfriend wheeled me around the airports in a wheelchair. However, I easily would've been able to get through the flights and multiple airports at 1 week out. If you've got long flights, what you may choose to do is bring little high protein packs of soup mix and ask your flight attendants for hot/warm water if you feel like you need to consume something!

You'll have a simple fluoroscopy procedure and swallow a liquid soon after surgery which will rule out serious leaks. Mine was the next day. Keep in mind that your stomach is very swollen at this point so you aren't necessarily in the clear. (Leaks are rather unlikely though, so don't dwell too much) I'm terms of monitoring, you are your best health advocate and should take an active role in monitoring yourself and keeping up with goals. My surgeon's assistant/team called me every day for the next 3 or 4 days to check up on me. And I have/had appointments at 2 and 6 weeks out. If I had any concerns I could always call them or go to urgent care or the ER. Good luck!

Just remember that you're beautiful, you're a good person, and you're worthy and deserving of love. If he's too shallow or immature to see that then you don't want him. With patience on both ends, you'll find the right one <3

The surgeon may have suspected gallbladder because it's a somewhat common condition with wls patients and believed there was some degree of referred pain Sent from my SM-G935V using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm in the same boat as you! And 3 weeks post op to the day and weigh 2 pounds more than I did a few days ago. We have to remember that gains at this stage are most likely hormonal/water weight. It's highly unlikely that we're consuming enough calories to gain fat (1 pound of fat=3500 Calories). If you're easily anxious like me and also following a low carb diet, you could choose to buy some ketone strips. A bottle of them is inexpensive. You just pee on one and it'll tell you if your body is releasing ketones or not (ketones are one sign that your body has turned to burning fat for energy) Good luck! Sent from my SM-G935V using BariatricPal mobile app

So am I just setting myself up for failure? I'm meeting my surgeon's protein and fluid intake goals, but I'm not paying much heed to focusing on low calorie/fat items due to restriction (ex. the other day I poached chicken thighs instead of breasts). I'm also able to tolerate about 1.5 ounces of ribeye steak without any undue difficulty or discomfort now. Will choosing such fatty cuts come back to bite me in the future? How often do you guys let yourselves indulge while, for the most part, staying on track? Last week I let myself have 1 square of dark chocolate. Is this within the realm of acceptable? I'm currently eating 450-650 calories a day with 3 meals and a protein shake. I'm also wondering about the list of acceptable foods I was given. Though mashed potatoes and sugar free pudding taste good, I don't see why I should be eating them. Aren't they more or less empty calories? I didn't partake in them much during my pureed stage, but should I just get rid of these foods now that I can tolerate solids? Also, has anyone found that they have a difficult time with soft cheeses? I bought some light laughing cow wedges and they seem to sit in my tummy for quite a lot longer than any other foods I eat. I'm usually only able to get through half a wedge before deciding I just don't want any more.

Remember nutritional yeast adds a nice cheesy flavor, protein, and b vitamins

Are you on a ketogenic diet? I use keto strips on days when I need to remind myself that my body is in fact in ketosis and I am actually losing weight (even when the scale hasn't budged). I'm really interested in trying it, which is also why I'm not sure if I should or shouldn't worry about fat. I get some healthy fats in via avocados etc., but also get in trans fats via things like meat. I wonder if heart, liver, and gallbladder health differs between people who are on various high fat/low carb/low fat/high protein diets. Thanks for your advice and I'm definitely staying away from the unnecessary carbs and pudding

I weigh a bit more than you. I'm 20 years old, 5'4, starting weight 256, and I've lost 22 lbs in 2.5 weeks

Nope! I make my own. The only thing I use to sweeten mine are either an apple or an orange Sometimes carrots add sweetness too! Just avoid added sugars and if you're buying premade ones, check the nutrition facts before buying. Good luck!

Sounds similar to my experience. Checked in around 7:30 AM, the procedure was at 9:30AM, I woke up around 11:30AM, fell asleep and woke up a few times, did lots of walking, got my fluids in, and checked out around 6 PM For a more complete description of my experience, you can check out my profile

Are you having jello? sugar free popsicles? ice cubes? Those are some solids that I was allowed to have during my clear liquids phase

I just bought some today for the first time! I'm enjoying the Oikos yogurt drink. It has 10 grams of protein and is 7 ounces. It does have quite a bit of sugar though (11 grams) and is 110 calories. I don't think I'd make this particular yogurt drink a regular part of my diet, but it's a nice break from the protein drinks, waters, and soups that I've been having lately.

Hi everyone! I had the sleeve on May 9th (9 days ago). So far, I'm down 19 pounds in 10 days (no doubt some of this is from some extra water weight I had before surgery). So what I'm wondering is: why is my waist 2 inches wider than it was than the last time I was at this weight (only a few months ago)? None of my measurements seem to have changed more than an inch since surgery. Could I still have gas or retained water from surgery? Can you lose muscle and change your body composition so significantly in only a few weeks? As a side question: What did you do to start exercising? I'm reluctant to go straight back to the cardio and strength training routines I had prior to surgery because I don't want to hurt myself. I'm walking a few minutes several times a day right now. What did you do in the beginning and how did you amp it up?